Begin Again: On Hold
by Mistress Ashley
Summary: Cliches abound, shaken until blended - BWL sister, portal, different worlds, Good and Evil, Father!Voldy ... Fem!Harry from a different world comes to the HP-verse through a portal ... to help the dark side! Better than the summary leads you to believe!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. He and all such characters belong to J. K. Rowling. The ideas, read cliches, don't belong to me either; they are bits and pieces of story ideas that I've read multiple places with a sprinkling of my own ideas, shaken until blended. The time put into this is all mine though.

**Story Art**: http : / / animalluver1985 . deviantart . com / art / Begin - Again - AU - Fem - Harry -Pot - 127853504 (remove spaces)

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The portal opened in the arching doorway of a dark room filled with Death Eaters who gazed in reverent awe at a man, if one could really call him that, who sat upon a throne placed in the front of the large chamber near the open fireplace. It glittered and swirled a bright blue.

Before any in the room could regain their bearing, for even in the magical world portals were rare things, the portal shimmered oddly before it spat out two dark forms crouching low to the ground. A spattering of gasps were heard around the room as the shapes resolved into those of large cats, a white tiger and a snow leopard. A meager few Death Eaters in the crowd seized their wands, most gaped at the sight layed out before them.

The cats separated, prowling to opposite sides of the portal as it shimmered once more and a courtly woman flowed elegantly from the portal. The cats quickly closed ranks around her, brushing against her welcomingly, yet still their eyes kept an ever vigilant watch on those in the room who had drawn their wands, growling and bearing fangs in warning to those who seemed too jittery.

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Severus Snape, stood in his customary place beside the Dark Lord, watched the scene unfold with a non-expression upon his face, hand straying towards his wand, only gripping it when the woman stepped through. Animals were easy, never thinking for themselves they worked on instinct, wizards, or as the case may be, witches, weren't so easily dealt with. Briefly he noted her pale beauty. She had long dark hair that seemed to have a gentle curl to the ends, although he was unable to tell the exact shade in the small amount of light put out by the candles and fireplace especially backlit as she was by the blue light emitting from the portal,it was pulled back from her face with a piece of green cloth that seemed to match her dress. The dress itself was odd, he'd never seen anything like it before, made up of strips of cloth in varying shades of green, from a deep forest green that looked almost black in the lack of light to a light silvery green. The green of the dress drew his gaze unerringly to her vibrant green eyes. He felt a jolt in his stomach, those where Lily's eyes, those very same eyes that she'd passed on that damnable Potter brat. Who was this woman? Though looking closer, girl might be a better describer, she appeared to be the same age as some of his older students.

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They didn't know it now but this woman's name was Rissa Riddle. She was the adopted daughter of Tom Riddle, who just happened to be Lord Voldemort. Being a Dark Lord kept him busy so she'd mostly been raised by her 'mother' Bellatrix Lestrange nee Black, though she felt no love for the woman, maternal or otherwise, she was better than her biological mother at least. The woman cared for her needs, made sure she was fed, taught her new curses, passed on her love for all things torture related.

Her biological family, the Potters, were to busy fawning over their subpar Boy-Who-Lived, her brother, Anthony Potter. He was their pride and joy, stupid as a rock with barely more magical power than than a Muggle. When the old coot Dumbledore had come to them with some tripe prophecy telling of how Anthony was to be the Wizarding World's hope, their savior from these dark times they'd jumped in feet first and she'd been pushed to the shadows. She'd realized she liked the shadows though and when she was old enough she'd left them with their little prince, gone out to see the world, learn all she could of the shadows that world had to offer. That's how she'd found him, Voldemort, her father. Rissa had followed the shadows far and wide and they'd led her to him, he'd shined to her eyes with so much dark power that sung to her, songs of war and death, blood and pain. And she'd loved him for it, she'd loved him even more when he'd shown her the power she held, the power she could wield against those who'd wronged her, those who'd wronged him. She'd left her past as Chrysanthemum Potter, she'd became Rissa Riddle.

Rissa Riddle wielded her power like a blade, cutting a swath through the Light. She learned every branch of magic she could find. That was how she'd stumbled across bonds, the Triumvirate Ritual. Not many had the power to perform it, even fewer lived through it but the benefits of a perfected Triumvirate, shared pleasure, pain, and healing energy could be shared making death almost impossible without the death of all three simultaneously, far outweighed the small chance of death during the ritual, well, small chance for her. She'd never failed a ritual before, the Triumvirate Ritual wouldn't be the one to kill her. The only blockade was that the other two involved had to have the same level of power as she herself had and the only other person she'd ever met with that level of magic was her father. That was easily solved, however, when she'd told him what she planned. He'd introduced her to his Death Eater's and let her have her choice. The only two with her level of magical power and compatibility were Lucius and his son, Draco. She'd quickly set about worming her way into their hearts, never expecting to love them in return and before she knew it they'd performed the ritual - with no deaths.

With the Triumvirate on the Dark side the Light had little chance of winning. That's when the Light showed their true colors, they became downright vicious. Instead of stunning spells, reductor curses were being used, instead of being turned over to the Ministry, they were held for questioning - which amounted to truth potions and being made to tell everything they knew - from every small childhood humiliation to every wrong they may have done. The Triumvirate found out the hard way that the effects of truth potions could be shared, weakened, and beaten between them when Lucius was captured. He'd been held for days before they could find his location. The scar, from a mishandled whip, couldn't be healed after that amount of healing time as well as the healing energy sent his way by Rissa and Draco.

The Mudbloods especially were meticulously ferocious. One Hermione Granger was a true sadist, a genius sadist, creating new spells left and right. One particular cutting spell had almost taken Draco's head, would have if he hadn't moved, even then, only the healing energy kept him from bleeding to death. The damage done to his voice box was permanent, voice forever rough and raspy.

They'd all gotten their vengeance, the war had been won and there'd been relative peace. The Triumvirate though had been made for war, slowly going crazy. Rissa's father had seen that and loving his daughter in his own twisted way, he'd found a way to send them to a different world, a world where they could fight, where they could begin again.

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The trio stalked through the Death Eaters who parted like the Red Sea, giving them a clear view of Voldemort sitting tall and proud, ever watchful, wand in his hand tapping gently against the arm of his throne.

When Rissa was at the foot of the gently raised dais the throne sat upon she dropped smoothly to her knees, bowing her head as she spoken quietly, reverently, "My Lord.", raising her head just enough to meet his eyes through her lashes she stated just as reverently, "Father."

The Dark Lord reached a hand forward, lips pursing, pushed her head up with fingertips under her jaw. "You, you seem to know who I am," a laugh escaped as his lips curved into a smirk, "and yet, I have no earthly idea who you are. Enlighten me," he finished voice dropping quite dangerously.

"We come from a world that should, according to my father, be very similar to this one."

"Why come then, if it's so similar?"

"He said you'd need us, and we ... we need war."

"Lord Voldemort, need a child and two animals?" A shiver went through the Death Eaters. They knew this tone, it was usually proceeded by the torture of the incompetent fool who contributed to it's use.

"My father managed to win the war many years before what he originally thought he would. Many Light fighters met their end because of us."

"And your ... pets? What do they manage to contribute?" He eyed the cats sitting on either side of her disdainfully.

Her chin went up haughtily, "They are part of my triumvirate. Lucius Malfoy" A gesture of her chin and like heat rising from a road on a hot day, the white tiger shimmered to be replaced by an aristocratic blonde with a sneer upon his lips and curving scar below his right eye, "and ..." another gesture, this time to her left, the snow leopard shimmered to be replaced by, "Draco Malfoy".

She thought she may have seen a glimmer of approval in her not-father's red eyes, his eyes were harder to read than her father's green.

There was a murmur of noise behind her, choking and wheezing, and a harshly drawn breath beside the Dark Lord. As she turned her eyes in that direction she was a tad startled to see a double of her lover. A closer look showed that they weren't identical. Her Lucius was harsher, more scarred, and much better at hiding his feelings. The Lucius before her was the typical 'before war' pureblood - arrogant, snobbish, but worst of all ... soft, both physically and mentally. Her gaze drifted back to Voldemort as she dismissed not-Lucius.

"Leave us!" was shouted at the bewildered Death Eaters, who snapped out of their stupor and hurried to comply. "Come." was directed at the Triumvirate as he swept passed their kneeling forms and out of the room.

The last sight the leaving Death Eaters had of the Triumvirate was of them getting nimbly to their feet and slipping elegantly behind their Master as he rounded the corner.

**TBC** ... hopefully

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Any ideas on where to go from here are welcome ... much needed even. Let to my own devieces this will go nowhere at a snail's pace. Read the Author Note for details.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter or even the cliches ideas used in this, only the time and energy put into writing it.

**AN:** I don't know if I'm completely happy with this ... it's not horrible but even in the short amount of time (this chapter has been sitting in my files since almost the beginning) since it was written my writing style has changed, mostly because my muse is just about all the way back and also because I'm getting used to writing again - relearning where to put commas, grammar and spelling. All those terribly complicated (for someone who hated English class) things that make a story something great.

I think I'll be putting this on hold until I can go back through and maybe revise/rewrite it ... and maybe get some idea of where I want it to go instead of just winging it.

Again, like most of my things, this was written in Notepad and not beta'd so any mistakes are mine.

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The office they came to was familiar yet changed. The furniture looked the same yet the colors of the room were different. Her father went for a more classic look. He was partial to creams, blacks, and varying shades of white and off-white. This Voldemort went for the Slytherin feel with greens, silvers, and blacks.

He seated himself behind the large ebony desk and with a wave of his hand motioned them to seat themselves in the chairs placed before him.

"I have read much of the Triumvirate Ritual. All the books and manuscripts talked of the benefits, the drawbacks, and the risk of death but none stated the specifics of the bond." While it wasn't a question an answer, an explanation, was expected.

"The bond is fairly simple. Emotions are transmitted fairly easily. They are always there as a background but never noticeable unless you mentally pull them forward or push them at one of the others. Thoughts are not as easy, expend enough energy at an acceptable distance and a word, a phrase, generally just an image or impression will come through. The bond itself can't be considered a drawback or a benefit on it's own. It could be why it's never mentioned in the books ... or it could be that the authors of those books rarely get their knowledge firsthand. Almost all of them say exactly the same things."

They bounced back and forth for a few minutes before Voldemort finally got around to what he'd wanted to know.

"Tell me of this world you come from. You mentioned I had won." Though it was made as a statement she could practically hear the questioning lilt hidden within.

"It's a very long story but yes, the Dark did win." From there she explained how he had raised her, trained her; how she had created her triumvirate and how they had been his main warriors, trained only for war and how they had cut a swath through the Light's forces. She explained how he had expected the war to last longer but with her and her mates help they had dominated the Light much earlier. "It was with our help that he rose so quickly and it was with that in mind that he sent us here."

"Tell me of yourself. How did my counterpart come to have a child? For if, as you say, things are not so different, the rituals that we performed on our way to true immortality should have destroyed any chance of children."

"I found him when I was very young and I somehow I managed to impress him. He adopted me, took me as his heir ... though there was never a need for one." Rissa explained.

"Who were you that you could manage to impress Lord Voldemort?", he murmured.

"I was born Chrysanthemum Potter."

"Potter!" Voldemort snarled, hands clenching and eyes narrowing.

"Yes, Potter." Rissa sneered, disgust written upon her face. "I was born to Lily and James Potter; a twin. A few years after our birth Dumbledore came to tell us of a prophecy that had been made. He said my twin, Anthony, was to be the savior of the people. He would be some great wizard," here she gave a contemptuous snort, "that he would lead the Light to victory. They hung upon every word Dumbledore spouted, after that day Anthony was practically an only child but I was smart for my age. I knew and understood what was happening and I vowed they would pay. I was pushed to shadows but the shadows loved me and they showed me what I could do ... what I could be. I learned all I could and when I'd learned everything the Potters library held I set out on my own. I followed where the shadows led me; every dark path they showed me, I took the knowledge that was there and moved on. They led me to you ... to him and he showed me things that shadows couldn't. He showed me what my power could truly do and what I could be. He showed me true power and I loved him for it. From that moment on, I was his. His to command. There was nothing that could break my trust in him, though the Light tried many times." By the end Rissa's voice had taken an almost obsessive tone. It showed she truly was his, that he could ask anything of her and she would perform beautifully for him.

Voldemort was convinced ... for now. He'd need to think of a way to test that devotion, to see if it extended fully to him or only as far as his counterpart ordered her. "Very well. We will talk more after you have rested. Go."

They stood to leave before his eyes caught something he hadn't payed much attention to at first glance, "Rissa, stay." Lucius and Draco continued out of the office and Rissa seated herself again. A shadow fell over her and she glance up to see Voldemort in front of her, hand outstretched to grasp her necklace. His fingers curled around the golden orb, studying it closely.

"Where did you get this?" There was a tense, almost angry note in his voice.

"My father gave it to me. It protects me."

"Have you no idea what this is, girl? What your ... father," a sneer could be heard in his voice, though it was not seen on his face, "has entrusted you with?"

Of course, she knew exactly what he was talking about. A piece of her father's soul was in that orb, it was why she'd been ordered to take it with her. While it did indeed protect her, it was mostly to protect himself. It was a safer choice to have his soul in another world, it could protect her while she in turn protected it. With it undamaged, he could live forever (baring unforeseen complications), rule their world forever. There was, of course, the small chance it could be destroyed here - it was smaller than in her original world. The last of the Resistance could very well be searching out the others but they'd never be able to find the last ... here, on her. In theory, her father could reign over their world for eternity. It was a beautiful thought but she and her mates were not meant for peace. It was something they could never experience.

"The question is ... Do you know what it is?"

A staring contest ensued, she was just a stubborn as him, but her lack of patience got the better of her.

"How about we agree we both know what it is and leave it at that?"

"Very well, you may leave."

Rissa walked swiftly from the room to find her mates had carried on without her. She followed the familiar path to the room they'd shared in her Father's manor.

Opening the door to the room and closing it behind her, her breath caught in her throat. The moonlight shining in from the window illuminated the room and shone upon the bed where it reflected off of pale skin and even paler hair. Her mates already asleep, curled around one another. It was a remarkable sight that she didn't think would ever stop amazing her, even if they lived for millions of years, which given the way they were aging could very well be put to the test someday.

Rissa disrobed hastily and slipped into the bed, a pleased sign escaping her lips as she was pulled into the comfort of her mates. Sleep came quickly after that.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Harry Potter.

**AN:** This is still on hold. Forgive the shortness of the chapter. I'm not sure where I want to take this besides towards Harry and Hogwarts so that's the direction I've (shortly) taken it. If you have any ideas let me know. They are always welcome.

Some things are taken right from OotP.

Now I know why most writers stick with one name for all their stories. I can't tell you how many times I used Alexa, from All For The Life Of A Child, instead of Rissa. How embarrassing. _:blush:_

_- Something happened when I uploaded this ... I lost almost all my punctuation so if you notice any I missed - Let me know. Thanks.  
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The next day, after a good night's sleep, was a planning session.

Voldemort wanted them sent out immediately to fell as many Light wizards as they could - including Harry Potter. Thankfully, Rissa managed to be the voice of reason.

"What if we did something ... different? Harry Potter isn't me but he is my counterpart so we must share similarities. My parents and his relatives, our need to prove ourselves, our powers ..." Rissa's eyes shone an unholy light, a Cheshire grin stretching her mouth wide. "Why, we could be the best of friends."

RRLMDM~RRLMDM~RRLMDM~RRLMDM

With a bit of monetary help from Lazy Lucius, Rissa was given a background. She was Rissa Williams, home schooled by her adoptive father until he had recently died - suspected of having been killed by Voldemort. With no one to take her in, she d been given adult status on the condition that she finished her schooling at one of the boarding schools. Rissa had chosen Hogwarts in the hopes to learn under some of the most renowned instructors.

An acceptance hadn't taken long to get. Lucius had managed to get some juicy bits of information into her history that ol' Dumbledore couldn't have passed up.

Although she'd been home schooled she was intelligent with a fair bit of power, a bit socially awkward and shy, and the best bit - Light influenced and given how her father died she had a fairly large grudge against Voldemort. She was the perfect pawn and Dumbledore tended to keep his pawns together.

How ironic that the Leader of the Light would lead to the Lights downfall.

RRLMDM~RRLMDM~RRLMDM~RRLMDM

Though Rissa's body shifted with calculated awkwardness, inside she seethed. _*They'd made her ride over with the first years. **Her**! Of course they had, this was all part of Dumbledore's plan. Make me nervous. Make me look to him for answers and he'll play me like a chess game with that grandfatherly facade.*_

Playing games like this was never something that interested her. Oh, sure, she could play with the best of them but it was always Lucius that enjoyed it most. Draco was more straightforward with dry wit and sarcasm. Rissa liked the battle. The blood, the pain, and the death with her as the cause of it all. Just thinking about it made her squirm and wish for her mates though thankfully it looked to those around her as if she'd been hit with an attack of nerves.

Finally, McGonagall forced them into a line with her at the back and marched them through the doors into the Great Hall.

The Sorting Hat sat upon a stool, attention focused upon it. Rissa listened in revulsion as the Hat sang - unite? Rissa gave a mental snort. _*Like that's ever going to happen!*_

She watched as the hat was taken up by each first year until all that was left was she.

Dumbledore stood to address the hall and silence descended. "We have something of an unusual situation. This is something that not happened in many years. We have a new student but not just any new student. Young Rissa has been tutored at home by her father who sadly passed away recently. She has chosen to come to Hogwarts to finish her schooling and she will be joining her classmates just as any other - only later than most." Dumbledore twinkled and smiled before he gave a nod toward McGonagall.

"Williams, Rissa." McGonagall called.

Rissa made her way to the stool with her head down, eyes peaking through her hair to dart around the large hall nervously, seeming to gain reassurance when her eyes connected with twinkling blue - inwardly disgust rose to coil around her like a giant snake.

Once seated upon the stool she placed the hat upon her head, confident it would see nothing incriminating.

While the link with her mates stopped invasion, like those she was sure to get from Dumbledore, it wouldn't stop something as advanced as the Sorting Hat. It made her even more grateful for her father's horcrux. The horcrux would be able to cloud her mind, placing that which needed to be seen at the front. It would give the illusion she wished to portray - that of an innocent, shy _Gryffindor_. Even if Dumbledore had managed to get around the Hat's enchantments there would be nothing to tell.

Once she was there, the rest would be up to her and her mates. The Dark Lord would surely say the hardest task would be fooling the Headmaster but Rissa knew it would be fooling Granger. The girl, while a mudblood, had their respect - respectful hatred but respect none-the-less. Granger had a brilliant mind. Most would call her a know-it-all but never look beneath the surface. The girl was like a dog, a Bloodhound, after every bit of information. Nothing was safe around her for she would pick and dig until she knew everything.

Rissa had heard that the Granger of this world used it for the 'good and health' of Harry Potter but Rissa and her mates knew the kind of things that mind could dream up and they would never underestimate her. Rissa would be puzzle in need of solving and she would have to tread carefully to keep her secrets just that.

"Gryffindor!"

(**AN**: I was going to leave you hanging here but 1 1/2 pages didn't seem enough.)

The hat was pulled off her head and she quickly glanced towards the Headmaster for reassurance, seeing the swiftly hidden triumph that blossomed in his eyes. He gave her a twitch of his lips and a nod before looking towards the Gryffindor table.

Rissa stood from the stool and made her way there, eyes zooming in on Harry. _*Mustn't look too eager.*_ With that thought she moved to the empty seat a few down from them.

Dumbledore stood to greet them. "To our newcomers," said Dumbledore in a ringing voice, his arms wide and a beaming smile on his lips, "welcome! To our old hands - welcome back! There is a time for speech making, but this is not it. Tuck in!"

Rissa listened to the Golden Trio as they talked to the Gryffindor Ghost, turning her smirk into a grin when one of them - the Weasley - insulted him.

Rissa picked at her food until the dishes disappeared and Dumbledore rose again. Rissa quickly focused her attention onto him, giving the illusion that anything out of his mouth was like something from the mouth of Merlin. Rissa's nose curled when a thought jumped into her mind. _~More like something from the opposite end.~_ _*That had to be Draco. He really shouldn't put so much energy into the bond.*_ She thought but her heart warmed a small bit at him being worried. _*Or more likely - bored.*_

Well, not that we are all digesting another magnificent feast, I beg a few moments of your attention for the usual start-of-term notices. First-years out to know that the Forest in the grounds is out-of-bounds to students - and a few of our older students out to know by now, too. Rissa almost rolled her eyes as she watched the Golden Trio exchange smirks. _*Could they be anymore obvious?*_

On and on it went until finally he got to naming the Defense teacher. - we are also delighted to introduce Professor Umbridge, our new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. Dumbledore didn't look too delighted; the skin around his eyes looked a bit pinched.

Rissa smirked when Umbridge interrupted Dumbledore before tuning her out when she started on her speech. Rissa had already heard all about her from Lazy Lucius she really didn't need to hear it again from the horse's ... erm I mean, toad's mouth.

Rissa looked up when she felt eyes on her, meeting bright emerald green before they looked away. Rissa forced a blush and dropped her gaze back to the table. She stayed that way until it was time to leave.

Rissa followed the other Gryffindors out of the Hall. She saw Harry walking alone a few steps ahead of her and hurried to catch up. Now, while he was alone, would be the perfect time for an introduction.

Once she was walking in step with him she had to remind herself not to give herself away by cursing him. _*He's so **pathetic**!*_ "Hey." She said quietly as she glanced sideways at him.

Harry gave her a nod, looking wary.

"I read what the Prophet has been saying". Rissa saw him wince. "I just want you know I don't believe it." She reassured him.

Harry looked at her with wide eyes. "Really? Why is that?" He frowned.

Rissa arranged her face into a pained expression. "My father. They covered it up but it was _him_. It had to be."

"Oh." Harry stated awkwardly. "Thanks." He gave her a grateful smile, which she returned with a nod.

_*Phase One: Complete.*_ Now all she had to do was keep it up and integrate herself closer.

She went to bed satisfied that night.


	4. AN: NOT A CHAPTER

This is NOT a chapter ... (it will be removed in a few days) and I'm really sorry for the heart in throat excitement some of you probably got at seeing an update. Look on the bright side ... it's not an abandonment AN either. I promise!

I just wanted to let those of you only tracking this story that I've posted an alternate (darker) beginning (more of a stand-alone for continuities sake) for this story - Stupidly called Begin Again: Alternate Beginning. Not very creative, I know.

As I said, it's a darker beginning ... what I originally wanted the beginning to be but it sank to a deep, dark corner of my mind and wouldn't come up for anything. It sent it's cousin in it's place - which is where the lighter, fluffier version I used comes from.

Go read it, let me know what you think.


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